Friday, December 18, 2009

Christmas is definitely my favorite season!

Christmas is just a week away...

The mornings are getting really cooler and cooler, nights are shorter, Christmas décor and lights are in full parade, the malls are decked with different and pretty decorations.  Christmas is right around the corner…

My family went around to the different malls, we just enjoy looking at the different decorations this year.


There's a gigantic Christmas Tree in the lobby of Shangri-La Mall


Dreamy Facade of Rustan's, also in Shangrila


Megamall Decors


Megamall Atrium


Virramall, Greenhills


at the Trinoma Mall


Market! Market!

Nothing signals Christmas like the warm glow of colored lights and the magical memories we've created as family and friends gather together.  From our Home to your Home,  MERRY CHRISTMAS everyone!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Join CDO Holiday Whole-Meat Ham Promo!!



CDO Holiday Whole-Meat Ham is currently having a promo.
They will be giving away a CANON IXUS 120 IS!


So, if you want to join, the mechanics are simple, please read on below:

* The raffle promo is open to anyone residing in the Philippines.

* Interested participants need only to register by filling up the registration form with correct information and submitting it.

* An entry can only be valid if the information written in the submitted registration form are also valid and correctly belongs to the participant. The fields that need to be filled out are as follows: (a) Email address; (b) Name; (c) Gender; (d) Birthday; and (e) Mobile phone number. Entries with incorrect data and information will be considered null and void.

* A participant may register and submit as many entries as he/she can, provided that each entry must have a unique email address and mobile phone number.

* A participant can increase his/her chances of winning by: (a) becoming a fan in the CDO Holiday Whole-Meat Ham Facebook Fan Page; and (b) sending Facebook friend invites to join the promo. A Facebook account is required for the above mentioned options, and each of them constitutes one (1) raffle entry for the promo.

* Two (2) units of Canon IXUS 120 IS Camera will be given away to two (2) lucky winners in the raffle draw.

* The online raffle draw will be held on December 22, 2009 in Rakso Computer Technology, 3rd floor Ricogen Bldg., 112 Aguirre St., Legazpi Village, Makati City.

* A participant can win only once in the raffle promo.

* Winners will be notified through an email confirmation and a phone call from Rakso Computer Technology.

* Prizes shall be claimed 60 days after the notification in the CDO Foodsphere, Inc., #560 West Service Road., Paso de Blas, Valenzuela City. For winners residing outside the Metro Manila area, delivery of prizes shall be arranged.

* Winners must present the email notification and a valid ID when they claim their prize or upon delivery.

* All employees of CDO Foodsphere, Inc. and Rakso Computer Technology, their dealer network, accredited advertising agencies and suppliers, and their relatives up to 2nd degree of consanguinity or affinity are disqualified from participating in the promo.

* Promo period is from November 20 to December 21, 2009.

To register, visit their website here: CDO Holiday Whole-Meat Ham Promo!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Fish Fillet with Tofu and Tausi


This is my sister's specialty.  I would always prefer that she cook it instead of me.  Really, it taste different, the dish taste like it came out of a  Kitchen of  a Chinese Restaurant.  Thank you sis, for cooking me this wonderful dish!  Both healthy and filling...  Yum Yum!

Ingredients:
500g fish fillet (Cream Dori or labahita), cut 2 inches wide, 2 inches long

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce salt & pepper

200g tofu, cubed (or more)

1 cup cooking oil

3 cloves garlic, peeled/minced

2 small onions, sliced

2 tbsps all-purpose flour

2 tbsps cornstarch, diluted in ½ cup water

1 cup Button mushrooms, sliced

1 medium carrot, sliced

1 cup leeks, sliced

2 tablespoons black beans/tausi

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 cup water (or juice of canned mushroom)

2 tbsp Oyster Sauce

½ tbsp Sesame Oil

1 cup Young Corn (canned), sliced

Few slices of ginger (about a thumb)

Directions:

1. Marinate sliced fish fillet in Worcestershire sauce, salt & pepper for 30 minutes. Roll fillets in all-purpose flour, fry until slightly brown, set aside; Do the same to your tofu, set aside.

2. Mash black beans/tausi. Heat pan with cooking oil, saute garlic, onion, and then add tausi, sauté for 5 minutes, then add water (or liquid from the canned mushroom), let it simmer for 5 minutes. Then add carrots, young corn – stir for awhile, then the mushrooms and leeks. Add oyster sauce and sesame oil, ginger and the diluted cornstarch. Season to taste (add salt or soy sauce and if you want, a bit of sugar).

3. Then add the fried fish fillets and tofu into the sauce. Serve hot with rice.

Happy cooking!

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

LUMPIANG SARIWA (Fresh Vegetable Roll Recipe)


Lumpiang Sariwa or Fresh Vegetable Roll, is a dish composed of different vegetables. Can also be considered a one dish meal because of the meat and shrimp in it. It could be eaten wrapped in lumpia wrapper or uwrapped like a stirfried vegetable dish and still with a sauce.

There are just so many versions of this dish around. Some recipes vary in the kind of vegetables added to it, other versions use Ubod (heart of a palm tree) and carrots only. and some recipes vary on the mixture of the sauce – it could be salty or sweet. In our family, we grew up eating this food and it is one of the many favorites of the family. I can have this any time of the day. And we prefer our sauce a bit sweet with the right blend of peanut butter. And we want to use fresh lumpia wrapper bought in the market (just be sure you buy fresh and still soft), not the frozen ones.

If you’re a fresh lumpia or vegetable lover, you gotta try this version. We just had this a week ago, and it was just soooo delicious.. In fact, I made a big batch, gave some to my Nanay and siblings, and we had it for lunch & dinner, and kept the rest of the batch in the refrigerator, and I had this for almost a week, or whenever I wanted vegetable in a meal. I think ‘am gonna cook this again next month – that is, if I can find fresh lettuce, coriander (wansuy) and fresh lumpia wrappers (not frozen), for without this three ingredients, it won’t be as delicious.

Ingredients
• VEGETABLE FILLING:

• 2 tbsp garlic, finely chopped

• 2 big onions, finely sliced

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

• 1/4 k ground chicken meat

• 1/4 k shrimp, peeled, deveined and minced

• 4-5 tablespoon fish sauce

• 1 medium cabbage shredded, (approx 3/4 k)

• 2-3 large carrots, julienned

• 2 medium chayote, julienned

• 3 medium potato, julienned

• 2 medium sweet potato, julienned

• ½ cup Kinstay coarsely chopped

• 1/2 cup water

• Salt and Pepper


Should you decide to use a homemade wrapper, here is the recipe.
WRAPPER:
• 1 pc egg

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup flour

• 1 tbsp vegetable oil

• ¾c to 1 cup water


SAUCE:
• 1 cup water

• 1/2 to ¾ cups sugar

• 1/4 teaspoon salt

• 6 tbsp soy sauce

• ½ cup peanut butter

• 1 to 2 tablespoon cornstarch dissolved in 2 tablespoons water


GARNISH/TOPPINGS:
• 10 pcs or more romaine lettuce leaves

• 1 bunch ciltantro/coriander (wansuy)

• ½ cup garlic, finely chooped

• cloves garlic


Directions
VEGETABLE FILLING:
In a large casserole, saute garlic and onions in vegetable oil. Add ground chicken and then the shrimp, sauté then add the fish sauce, let it simmer for 2 minutes then add water, bring to a boil, reduce heat and cover. Add the potato, sweet potato, stir well, then add carrots and chayote and stir-fry 5-10 minutes (or until they are half cooked) then add the cabbage and kinstay, cook for another 5 minutes. Its ok if it tends to be a bit dry, we won’t be needing the sauce of the vegetables. Drain in a strainer and let it cool.

SAUCE:
Combine water, soy sauce, sugar and a bit of salt in a small pot and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Simmer over low heat until it boils, then get the peanut butter and put some of the cooking liquid sauce in it and stir (this will help melt the peanut butter, so that when it is mixed with the cooking sauce, it will blend in smoothly). Season to taste (this will depend on how seet or salty you like the sauce to be. Then get the dissolved cornstarch and mix it with the cooking sauce until it thickens. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm. Transfer into a gravy bowl just before serving (you may add a bit of finely chopped garlic into the sauce before serving it).

WRAP:
Combine egg and salt. Gradually add flour & salt, alternating with water. Beat with a whisk until smooth. Beat in oil gradually. Refrigerate batter 1 hour. If you want a thinner wrapper, add some more water gradually.

To cook, brush a nonstick pan with oil and place over low heat. Ladle in 2 tablespoons batter, swirl to cover pan and pour off excess. Cook until the wrapper can be lifted with a spatula without sticking (if batter bubbles, the pan is too hot). Turn and cook just to warm the other side. Set aside and cover with a towel to keep warm.

TO ASSEMBLE:
Place a lettuce leaf and coriander in the center of a wrapper. Add 2 tablespoons filling. Fold bottom of wrapper over filling; wrap one side over filling and roll to the other side. The edge of the lettuce will stick out. Seal edge with water or sauce. Wrap each lumpia in wax paper. Serve with sauce and minced garlic in the side. Enjoy!